Swinkle retires from utility post
By Greg Rayburn / Editor / grayburn@sherwoodvoice.com
Thursday, February 4, 2010 12:06 PM CST
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| Sandra Swinkle, who has taken phone calls for a decade in Sherwood’s public utilities department from sometimes frustrated city garbage collection customers, has decided to call it quits. She retired recently but said she is leaving her poster of a koala bear (at top), saying looking at the image daily brought her peace of mind whether her day was hectic or peaceful. (Greg Rayburn) |
The city’s garbage collection department. Most people only think about it when their garbage isn’t collected or the bill goes up. In the midst of frustration, it’s easy to pick up the phone, call the city to vent, and then hang up the receiver without giving a courteous good-bye.
On the other end of the phone, for about 10 years in Sherwood, was Sandra Swinke, 70, who has hung up her calming voice and listening ear to enter into a new phase of life — retirement.
“It’s time,” said Swinkle, of North Little Rock. She said she’s planning to move to a peaceful retirement home in the Mountain Home area. “I might even learn to play the fiddle.” Swinkle said she is in good health.
Her career with the city started in 2000. She worked for a short time at the Jack Evans Senior Citizens Center and then was transferred to the public works department where she stayed until her retirement about one week ago.
“This is a high-stress job,” Swinkle said. “It is very stressful.”
She said having a calm voice helps deal with frustrated customers upset over their garbage service.
Swinkle said she will miss the many friends she has made among her fellow city employees.
“I never thought I would be here 10 years later,” Swinkle said.
One of the more memorable times at her job was the fall of 2009 when the city converted to automated garbage pickup trucks. The city distributed new garbage bins to several thousand Sherwood homes, and the entire garbage collection system was changed in order to reduce costs.
Swinkle said city officials did their best to educate the public about the change, but some people didn’t pay attention until the changeover.
“The city put out a newsletter on all of the bins delivered to all the households, but some people didn’t read them,” Swinkle said.
So Swinkle was the phone clerk on the front lines hearing first-hand from unaware city garbage customers who had many questions. She said if many of the people had read the newsletters, their questions would have been answered.
Swinkle said her phone rang repeatedly and continually for more than a month. Now the public has caught on to the change and a sense of calm returned to her office before her departure.
Swinkle said she decided to leave her poster of a koala bear on the wall next to her phone. She said the sight of it brought her peace many times before her busy day started.
“I’m leaving it for whoever takes my place,” Swinkle said. “There is something peaceful about it.”
Swinkle came to work for the city after her former employer, Tab Productions of Little Rock, downsized and she found herself out of a job.
She said she has no regrets that she worked for the city but believes it is time for her to retire.
